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@corduroy Yes, we did a 3 week elimination diet to give time for my body to clear any possible allergens and then to clear LO's system as well. We saw a huge improvement after one week, but it wasn't completely cleared till the 3 weeks had passed.

@Bao: Paige's dermatologist said eczema is more often than not genetics and allergies play a large part. Even seasonal allergies. If parent has allergies, kid probably has allergies and kids with allergies tend to get eczema or psoriasis. It's a skin condition but if the allergy is food related, a dietary change can help. If it's an environmental allergy, it's not about what you eat.

She said to keep the skin moisturized because dry skin makes the eczema worse. So use a non petroleum based ointment (acquaphor) multiple times (12x) a day after dabbing the skin with water. If after a week of doing this, you may need a steroid to treat it before it gets worse. She gave us protopic which is the lowest steroid treatment possible. 2 days and everything cleared up but she has flare ups from time to time. I just religiously moisten her skin and lock it in with babyganics healin groovy since that's what I have. And in about 4-5 days it goes away. It also tends to flare up when she has a cold and during spring allergy season. Doctor says kids tend to grow out of it.

Bumping this. LO is 4 months old and just in the past week her eczema has gotten bad. I recently switched detergents and so tonight I am going to re-wash everything in tide free & clear. Ped said is probably seasonal allergy related- she has been congested and snotty... is it worth taking her to allergist? She's EBF so I will do elimination diet if detergent change doesn't help. I just feel so bad for her!!

@LulaBee: honestly an allergist isn't going to tell you anything your pediatrician hasn't already. Sadly some kids are just more prone to flare ups. The best thing you can do in my opinion is watching what you are using on her skin. We bathe every other day, immediately follow up with Vanicream and in the mornings before she dresses we lather her in Dream Cream (Pure Haven Essentials.) We use PHE kid wash too or Cetaphil. (her hair is getting thicker so I feel like the kid wash is better at actually cleaning her hair, I'll use the Cetaphil on her body.)

My daughter's flares up when the weather changes (suddenly warm day when it's been cold, vice versa) and seasonal changes. I'm sure there is some dietary but our doc said to not change anything dietary as she will grow out of it.

@LulaBee: I would consider an elimination diet. I know that a lot of peds tell you they will grown out of it, but what if that takes years?! Once my daughter could figure out how to scratch her eczema it broke my heart because it was clear it was driving her crazy! I knew I had to do something. I had already tried different lotions, detergents, long bath, short bath, eliminated dairy and gluten. Nothing helped at all.

And because you are EBF it will be easier to do now than when she starts eating solids. It may not help anything, but if you can figure out a food trigger now if there is one, you will save yourself so much grief. I haven't had to use any hydrocortisone since we figured out the food triggers. We still get little flare ups here and there, but NOTHING like what we were experiencing. We are able to manage it with normal lotions/coconut oil.

If you do decide on an elimination diet, I suggest you see a naturopath because you'll want to be careful with BFing to make sure you and baby are getting what you need. They are very experienced and can help guide you through the process.

Trust me an elimination diet is not easy. I was so happy when I could get off it, but to see my daughter's disposition change drastically for the better as her eczema started to clear up...totally worth the sacrifice. Plus I lost the last of the baby weight as a bonus!

@LulaBee: I'm actually going to go against the grain and tell you to bathe more frequently, not less often. The water is not the enemy, it is all the ingredients in soaps etc and things like Aveeno that are supposed to help but according to our pediatrice derm, they make it worse! You need to avoid using soaps and things like that because they are drying. We bathe in lukewarm water everyday with Cetaphil Cleansing Cream. Immediately after bath, slather baby in Cetaphil, CreaVe or Aquaphor to lock in the moisture. Dress in fitted cotton PJs, avoid fleece because it leaches the moisture out.

@LulaBee: I can appreciate that. I'm in Seattle where it's sometimes hard to find things that aren't labeled natural! This was just my experience and I waited a while before trying, hoping something else would work. But that doesn't mean it will work for everyone that has eczema.

I also second cutting out soap for baths. We still only use shampoo and just warm water for the body.